Thread: looking for input on this truck

been looking for a truck for awhile, came upon this and looking for input as to pros and cons, going to see it tomorrow. I will be hauling dirt and gravel and towing a 20ton tag to tow my jd 160 excavator.
thankshttp://www.truckpaper.com/listingsde...x?OHID=4568545

been looking for a truck for awhile, came upon this and looking for input as to pros and cons, going to see it tomorrow. I will be hauling dirt and gravel and towing a 20ton tag to tow my jd 160 excavator.
thankshttp://www.truckpaper.com/listingsde...x?OHID=4568545

A C7 Cat engine would not be what I would want in that truck and at 335 horse it would be maxed.

Air ride suspension is not so great for a dump truck, like someone else said probably a converted road tractor. Walking beam suspension is good for a dump or dirt truck. The 8ll that it has is a perfect trans for a dump.

I would not consider that truck for your purpose. Air ride as stated is not a good idea for off road applications, although the Pete 4 bag is better than the KW 8 bag off road, still not a great suspension for this application. I had a 4 bag air in a 378 Pete pulling a side dump. I don't like the short bed. Pulling a 160 with a tag trailer is a load. I would go with a 16' bed to max your payload on the truck and also to have a longer more stable towing platform. Although you guys on the East Coast can get by with less hp than we can, I would opt for more power. Your 160 likely weighs around 37K and your trailer about 10K, if you where to pull that kind of weight with that engine, I would want a lot gears. Although the 8LL is a good dump truck tranny off road, with this application of dump trucking and heavy over the road pulling I would not consider it.

I would look for a heavier spec truck, with a longer bed but that's based on my Out West experience which may not be completely applicable to you guys Out East.

I don't think that truck is so bad and it seems about right for the money? The C7 in a tandem wouldn't be my ideal choice. I don't have a problem with the length, it would be very maneuverable. I would like a heavier front.

First place I worked had a Pete quad that was 300 horse with a 8LL and it seemed fine but realize that was a few years ago now...

Just my 2 cents, horse power isn't everything. It is gearing that gets you around the job site. I've found that for me a tandem is the right size. I can get around on tight sites but haul enough to make worth hauling. If I need a lot hauled, I find it's cheaper to hire it. That being said, my truck now is tandem, geared low and 475 hp.

I had a F650 bobtail dump with the c7 behind a allison 6 speed. Was a good little truck to tow around my 14K tag trailer with skid steer but that was about the the capacity. what you are asking the c7 to tow and haul would be to much unless you dont mind going 25-35 up any type of incline with the flashers on.